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Updated: Feb 12, 2026

Mapping Dysfunctional Protein-Protein Interactions in Disease
Published on: October 24, 2025
Disease-related metabolites affect protein-nanoparticle interactions
Mahdi Tavakol1, Abbas Montazeri, Reza Naghdabadi
1Department of Mechanical Engineering, Sharif University of Technology, Tehran, Iran. naghdabd@sharif.edu.
Metabolites like glucose and cholesterol significantly alter the nanoparticle protein corona, influencing biological identity and immune response. This highlights the need for personalized nanoparticles in disease-specific clinical applications.
Area of Science:
- Biomaterials Science
- Nanomedicine
- Computational Biology
Background:
- Nanoparticle (NP) surfaces in biological fluids form a protein corona, dictating their biological interactions and fate.
- A personalized protein corona varies based on individual disease states.
- Metabolites in plasma may influence protein corona formation.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the role of metabolites (glucose and cholesterol) in personalized protein corona formation.
- To understand how metabolites affect protein-NP interactions and subsequent biological responses.
Main Methods:
- Utilized multi-scale molecular dynamics (MD) simulations, including coarse-grained (CG) and all-atom (AA) approaches.
- Simulated interactions between fibrinogen, polystyrene NPs, glucose, and cholesterol.
Main Results:
- Glucose and cholesterol induced significant changes in fibrinogen binding sites on NP surfaces.
- Metabolite concentration altered fibrinogen adsorption/replacement dynamics (Vroman effect).
- Metabolites influenced the immune-triggering potential of the fibrinogen-NP complex.
Conclusions:
- Metabolomic profiles can drive personalized protein corona formation.
- Metabolites play a crucial role in determining NP biological identity and immune response.
- Disease-specific, patient-tailored NPs are essential for safe and effective clinical applications.
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